Edmunds, 67, had served two terms on the court, which is comprised of the Chief Justice and six associate justices, each of whom serve an eight-year term. Had he been elected to his third term, Edmunds would have had to retire before the term ended because of North Carolina law about age limits.

Morgan, 60, has been a Wake County Superior Court judge since 2005 and was a Wake County District Court judge for 10 years before that.

Edmunds’ and Morgan’s parties were not listed on the ballots, and Morgan won most counties, including ones with a Republican majority of voters. Meanwhile, the five Court of Appeals judicial races did list their political parties, and Republicans swept.

Issues expected to be addressed soon at the state Supreme Court include education, environment, redistricting, social and criminal justice.